March has arrived, and the Minnesota Gophers men’s basketball regular season has come to a close. They finished with a 18-3 overall record , 9-11 in Big Ten play and focus now shifts to the Big Ten tournament, where they hold the #9 seed, good for a first round bye. Their 2nd round matchup will tip-off at 11 a.m CDT on Thursday vs Tom Izzo and the #8 seed Michigan State Spartans.
The Gophers’ chances of an at-large bid are pretty much dead so they’d have to win the Big Ten tourney this week, to make the NCAA Tournament. (Editor’s note: That has never happened in the tournament’s 25-year history)
Minnesota Gophers basketball players earn All-Big Ten Honors, Awards
But no matter how next week goes down, the 2023-24 season has already been the exact type of bounce-back year that head coach Ben Johnson needed in his 3rd-year. Entering the season, the DeLaSalle grad had a total of six Big Ten wins since taking over the program prior to the 2021-22 season.
Minnesota’s resurgence can be attributed in large part to the play of four Gophers, Dawson Garcia, Cameron Christie, Elijah Hawkins, and Parker Fox. The latter three players were all new to Ben Johnson’s lineup this season, in one way or another. All four, including super senior Parker Fox, still have eligibility remaining next season and all four were recognized by the Big Ten on Tuesday.
Dawson Garcia (Jr) : All-Big Ten – 2nd Team
Dawson Garcia earned a spot on the All-Big Ten Second Team as voted by media members, while also securing a spot on the All-Big Ten Third Team as voted by coaches. The Prior Lake native wrapped up his second season with the Gophers after transferring from Marquette and North Carolina to play closer to home. Garcia posted impressive averages of 17.7 points and 6.7 rebounds per game this season.
Elijah Hawkins (Jr.): All-Big Ten – Honorable Mention
Elijah Hawkins, the Gophers starting point guard, made a strong impression in the Big Ten this season and received an honorable mention. In his first year with the Gophers after transferring from Howard, the diminutive point guard showcased his exceptional passing abilities over and over and over and over and over…
The Washington DC product set a University of Minnesota program record with 17 assists in a single game, earlier this year, and broke the all-time single-season assists record, with 224 (and climbing), too. Hawkins averaged 9.4 points and 7.5 assists per game. All that production and only an honorable mention? The aforementioned Dawson Garcia isn’t happy about that.
Cameron Christie (Fr.) : Big Ten All-Freshman Team
Cameron Christie had a standout season and emerged as one of the top freshmen in the conference, earning a spot on the Big Ten All-Freshman Team. Christie showcased his talent by starting in 23 games this season, averaging 11.3 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 2.2 assists in his debut season with the Gophers.
Parker Fox (Sr.) : Big Ten Sportsmanship Award
Parker Fox, who bleeds maroon and gold, was honored for his sportsmanship. Fox, who played high school basketball at Mahtomedi before committing to Northern State and later transferring to the Gophers, overcame injury setbacks that sidelined him for two seasons.
This season, he finally had the chance to showcase his talent and undoubtedly brought a contagious energy to the locker room. Fox averaged 4.7 points and 3.1 rebounds per game.
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